The tug of war between Twin Cities legislators and their outstate colleagues is older than the state itself. St. Peter fought to move the territorial capital from St. Paul in 1851, seven years before statehood. St. Paul remained the capital city thanks to a trick that Roger Stone would be proud of. A bill making St. Peter the capital was
Open memory trunks, take a trip to the past
Last week my time machine landed smack-dab in the middle of the past. What a happy but sometimes sad trip it was –- happy because those days, those decades, were brimming with such good times; sad because so many people I knew once upon a time are now departed. Too many school chums, friends, relatives, co-workers, neighbors. Gone. My parents,
No stars in dreary government buildings
The third-graders lay flat on the floor, looking up at the dome, 160 feet above. What did they see, the tour guide asked? “Stars” the children said as they examined the inner dome of the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing. The star-filled dome represents the vastness of the universe, encouraging us all to “reach for our stars,” the guide suggested
Primary endangers voter privacy, participation
With the New Hampshire primary and the Iowa caucuses finally counted, the 2020 presidential primary season is in full swing. The Democratic front-runners look to be Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg. Following closely behind is our state’s own Sen. Amy Klobuchar. Elizabeth Warren and Joe Biden trail farther behind. Donald Trump, with no major
Get technology out of baseball
And then it was over, with a bang. The fall sports season ended with the last blasts of confetti canons after the Super Bowl. Fall, the most exciting sports season, features pro and college football and the World Series. When the NBA and NHL launch in the fall, every team has a chance to be champion. But now it’s February
Senators deliver crown: All hail, King Donald!
Like fawning courtiers, U.S. Senators just handed over a crown: All hail, King Donald! That impeachment nontrial was a very dark day for America. The jaw-dropping moment of the farce came when Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz flailed his arms like a wind-up toy in his pretzel logic, which goes like this: In the Ukraine scheme, Trump was merely trying
Canadians know how to get a grip on winter
After enjoying the snowiest, coldest 10 days of the winter, Minnesotans once again proved we know how to handle weather. We can mock those less-hardy citizens in other parts of the country where a few inches of snow or temperatures below freezing mean catastrophe. But our friends to the north have an even better grip on winter. Between Christmas and
Impeachment deserves a fair hearing
During the last few months, our country has been in the middle of a process of historical significance, the impeachment of President Donald Trump. Beginning with the revelations about military aid to Ukraine and a July 25 phone call with Ukraine’s leader Volodymyr Zelesnky, further developments have embroiled the Trump Administration in an investigation of massive proportions. While it is